Fixing a bicycle, making sure the dog has enough food, accessing voicemail, seeing a doctor and getting a haircut aren't as simple for folks who don't have a car or roof over their head.

The United Way of Santa Cruz County tried to lend a hand to the area's homeless Tuesday by launching Project Homeless Connect -- a one-day, one-stop shop for services that included acupuncture, banking, feet cleaning, HIV testing, animal care, mail, clothing, vision and dental care and government benefits.

The Santa Cruz Civic Auditorium was packed throughout the day as more than 1,000 homeless sought the services offered.

About 500 volunteers helped make the area's first Project Homeless Connect a success, said Kymberly Lacrosse, a community organizer with United Way.

"Today is a revolution really," Lacrosse said. "This is a whole new approach to homeless services by bringing everything in one place. The greatest challenges for the homeless are transportation and access."

A friend gave Vicky Wolcott a ride to the Church Street auditorium so she could go through the process of getting a copy of her birth certificate and a state identification card. Wolcott, 42, said she's been homeless for about a year.

"This is really cool. I've never seen anything like this before," she said. "I got appointments to do everything I need to do. Now I can focus on looking for a job as a caretaker."

The idea to bring homeless services under one roof for the day was copied from a similar program that started in San Francisco in 2004 and has since been emulated in dozens of cities across the country and Canada.